Ahansal Wins First Stage of Marathon Des Sables

Local hero Mohamad Ahansal of Morocco won the first stage of the 2013 Marathon des Sables on Sunday (April 7), finishing the 37.2 kilometre stage from Jebel Irhs to Oued Tijekht in 2 hours 50 minutes 56 seconds. Four-time race winner Ahansal, who believes he is 40 years old but has no documentation to prove it, finished 4 minutes 29 seconds ahead of runner-up Antonio Salaris of Italy and 9 minutes 37 seconds in front of Spain's Miguel Capo Soler.